ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: coach · face · vault · straw · cell · bass · wind · squash

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. squash — the sport
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. face — part of the head
  7. cell — in biology
  8. wind — moving air
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. face — to point toward
  12. wind — moving air
  13. face — to confront
  14. vault — a safe
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cell — a phone
  20. bass — the fish
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. squash — to crush
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com